The most important week for any Catholic is Holy Week. During that time, the Church wants us to reflect upon one of the greatest mysteries of our faith: the passion and death of our Blessed Lord. The Church, over the centuries, has assembled some of the greatest prayers and ceremonies to commemorate this great act of love of Jesus. These prayers and ceremonies are all accompanied by beautiful psalm tones and sublime Gregorian chant that normally are only heard during that mournful week. The recently reprinted Liber Brevior was based on the original 1954 edition, and did not include the restored Pius XII Holy Week ceremonies and offices.

This Gregorian Chant Holy Week Book has been printed just for Holy Week, and includes all the chants and melodies for all the offices, ceremonies and Masses of that week. Indeed it can be argued it is difficult to restore the traditional sense of Holy Week on the parish level today, but this book will help bring back the sense of the sacred to that week, if properly implemented and used by those in charge conducting Holy Week services.

The new Gregorian Chant Holy Week Book was made by taking out those parts from the 1962 Liber Usualis that pertain to the entire week, beginning with the restored Palm Sunday ceremonies up to and including the Easter Vigil. Thus, parishes with those interested in doing the offices of the Sacred Triduum, for example, can find this book most valuable in singing those offices on the last 3 days of Holy Week. And all the other sung ceremonies can be found in this book as well. For choirs on the parish level, we believe this book of 251 pages is smaller, more useful and more affordable for Holy Week, than the larger and bulkier Liber Usualis.

Sewn bound hard cover makes this book durable for a long life. One ribbon marker was inserted in the book as a speedy reference locator. All the music is in Gregorian notation with the rubrics in English.

Liber Brevior

This beautiful edition of the 1954 Liber Brevior,includes the entireKyriale, all the liturgical chant propers for all Sundays, Commons and Feasts, plus Sunday Compline and Vespers as well as the Requiem and Burial liturgies.. Additional chants are included in honor of the Blessed Sacrament and the Virgin Mary and more. Special chants for the liturgical seasons are included as well. This excllent edition includes also a supplement with five Masses that were not included in the 1954 edition – St. Joseph the Worker, the Queenship of Mary, St. Pius X, the North American Martyrs & Our Lady of Guadalupe. And we updated the moveable feast chart that goes up to the year 2041.

This edition of the Liber Brevior works perfectly for the celebration of the Extraordinary Form (1962 Missal) and will only miss a few proper settings for saints canonized between 1954 and 1962, such as St. Martin de Porres. For those parishes who celebrate the Holy Week services according to the 1962 Missale Romanum, using the 1954 edition of the Liber Brevior will require careful consultation with the Missal as there were some liturgical modifications in those years.

Small choirs will be pleased to see that the Liber Brevior includes easier Psalm-tone settings for Graduals, Alleluias and Tracts in an appendix in the back of the book.

(Sample page of the simplified psalm-tone settings of the Graduals, Alleluias, etc. in the appendix.)

Unlike the Liber Usualis the Liber Brevior does not include the text of the Orations, Epistles and Gospels sung by the Priest at High Mass. Thus the Liber Brevior has fewer pages, a mere 800.

The most important week for any Catholic is Holy Week. During that time, the Church wants us to reflect upon one of the greatest mysteries of our faith: the passion and death of our Blessed Lord. The Church, over the centuries, has assembled some of the greatest prayers and ceremonies to commemorate this great act of love of Jesus. These prayers and ceremonies are all accompanied by beautiful psalm tones and sublime Gregorian chant that normally are only heard during that mournful week. The recently reprinted Liber Brevior was based on the original 1954 edition, and did not include the restored Pius XII Holy Week ceremonies and offices.

This Gregorian Chant Holy Week Book has been printed just for Holy Week, and includes all the chants and melodies for all the offices, ceremonies and Masses of that week. Indeed it can be argued it is difficult to restore the traditional sense of Holy Week on the parish level today, but this book will help bring back the sense of the sacred to that week, if properly implemented and used by those in charge conducting Holy Week services.

The new Gregorian Chant Holy Week Book was made by taking out those parts from the 1962 Liber Usualis that pertain to the entire week, beginning with the restored Palm Sunday ceremonies up to and including the Easter Vigil. Thus, parishes with those interested in doing the offices of the Sacred Triduum, for example, can find this book most valuable in singing those offices on the last 3 days of Holy Week. And all the other sung ceremonies can be found in this book as well. For choirs on the parish level, we believe this book of 251 pages is smaller, more useful and more affordable for Holy Week, than the larger and bulkier Liber Usualis.

Sewn bound hard cover makes this book durable for a long life. One ribbon marker was inserted in the book as a speedy reference locator. All the music is in Gregorian notation with the rubrics in English.

The Traditional Rosary - 3 Audio CDs

15 Mysteries of the Rosary, popular devotions, prayers and music in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Order 2 or more for $10 each…
This recording, which presents the emotional depth and variety of music for this important liturgical season, traces the six major services of Holy Week, from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.

We are happy to offer the music CD, MISERERE: Music for Holy Week from St. John Cantius, at the very low price of $15.00 (USD), plus shipping and handling charges.

Support the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius and order today!

This is a fine liturgical setting of the Canticle of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the Canticle of Simeon by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. Written for SATB Choir and organ, the composition has verses in chant and fauxbourdon verses for SATB Choir.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

King of Glory, by Nicholas White, is a musical setting of a poetic text from The Temple (1633) by George Herbert. Replete with lovely melodies and lush harmonies, listeners are inspired by the beauty of this music.

King of glory, King of peace,
I will love thee;
and that love may never cease,
I will move thee.
Thou hast granted my request,
thou hast heard me;
thou didst note my working breast,
thou hast spared me.

Wherefore with my utmost art
I will sing thee,
and the cream of all my heart
I will bring thee.
Though my sins against me cried,
thou didst clear me;
and alone, when they replied,
thou didst hear me.

Seven whole days, not one in seven,
I will praise thee;
in my heart, though not in heaven,
I can raise thee.
Small it is, in this poor sort
to enroll thee:
e’en eternity’s too short
to extol thee.

UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT

“King of Glory, King of Peace” is a poem of contrasts, alternating in the first two verses between what “I”, the poet/singer, promises to do and what God has already done. Originally titled “Praise (II)”, the poem is taken from the posthumous collection of Herbert’s poetry, “The Temple”. It has been linked both to Psalm 116 and also to Psalm 70:4 – “Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Let those who love your salvation say evermore, ‘God is great!’”.

The humility that is evident in much of Herbert’s poetry is seen in the penultimate couplet of this hymn: “Small it is, in this poor sort / to enrol thee”, meaning “it is a small thing to celebrate you in such an inadequate way”.

Commenting on the collection of poems that form “The Temple”, George Herbert’s editor, Constantinos Patrides, says these poems remind us of the pilgrim’s progress under the care of the Church, our spiritual journey through this valley of tears, to the Heavenly Temple, where the Church, triumphant in glory, worships God eternally. At the heart of Herbert’s writing is his frequent focus on the Eucharist – “the marrow of Herbert’s sensibility”—as Patrides notes. This reveals his emphasis on the goodness of God’s grace in the spiritual life.

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

International Record Review ~ June 2007

The Cherry Tree Carol, Nicholas White

SATB Choir and Organ

A Christmas Carol setting by Nicholas White

The Cherry Tree Carol has been a popular Christmas Carol text since the 15th century. Choirs will love to sing Nicholas White's new setting of The Cherry Tree Carol, and organists will appreciate the vigorous style of the organ part.

The Cherry Tree Carol has been a popular Christmas Carol text since the 15th century. Choirs will love to sing Nicholas White’s new setting of The Cherry Tree Carol, and organists will appreciate the vigorous style of the organ part.

PREVIEW THE SCOREClick here to get a sneak peek at the score…
ABOUT THE TEXT

“The Cherry Tree Carol” tells a fanciful story of the Holy Family’s journey to Bethlehem. On the way they stop at a garden with a cherry orchard. This imagery calls to mind Adam and Eve in Eden’s Garden as mentioned in the Book of Genesis. The image of the orchard offering its fruit to Mary becomes even more fitting in light of evidence that the branch from which she plucks belongs to no ordinary tree. The cherry tree is a symbol for the “Tree of Life.” Mary, as the new and perfect “Eve,” is being shown as worthy to partake of the “Tree of Life.”

Mary asks Joseph to pick her cherries. The anger that the carol ascribes to Joseph indicates his inner frustration over his inability to provide Mary’s request. In the carol, the tree is far above him and he cannot get the cherries Mary wants. In a spiritual sense, Joseph knows that only Jesus, the new “Adam,” is worthy to gain the fruits of redemption, symbolized in the carol by the cherries.

It is true that Adam and Eve’s departure from the Garden of Eden barred them and their posterity from the “Tree of Life.” However, a rabbinic tradition has it that the last divine word that rang in the ears of Adam and Eve as they left the Garden of Eden was tashub (“You shall return!”). When Genesis 3:15, the Protoevangellium (“First Gospel”) promises the human race a Redeemer (the New Adam, Jesus Christ), Scripture paints an image of the head of the serpent (Satan) being crushed under heel. Just as an infant stands upon his mother’s foot held up by her hands, so Jesus stands upon the foot of Mary as His own footstool. With the mighty force of this Holy Child, Jesus crushes the serpent—the dragon with Mary’s delicate heel.

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

A Prayer for Guidanceby Nicholas White is a penetratingly beautiful anthem for choir. There are two versions are available: (1) Choir and Organ Edition and (2) Edition for Alto Solo, Choir and Strings.
OPTIONS FOR YOUR ORDERA Prayer for Guidance, Nicholas White—Choir and Organ EditionA Prayer for Guidance, Nicholas White— Edition for Alto Solo, Choir and StringsA Prayer for Guidance, Nicholas White—String Parts
SAMPLE SCOREClick here to see a sample of the score of the Choir and Organ Edition.

Listen to a recording of A Prayer for Guidance by Nicholas White (Edition for Alto Solo, Choir and Strings)

Text of A Prayer for Guidance

Direct us, O Lord, in all our doings with thy most gracious favor, and further us with thy continual help; that in all our works begun, continued, and ended in thee, we may glorify thy holy Name, and finally, by thy mercy, obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

About the Text

The original text is a Collect from the Sacramentarium Hadrianum (c. 786). Here is the original Latin text:

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

International Record Review ~ June 2007

Missa de Sancta Maria Magdalena

New ICEL English Version - for use with the 3rd Edition of the Roman Missal

Now Biretta Books has been licensed by Oxford University Press to present this Mass anew for use with the current ICEL English version of the Mass (i.e., 3rd Ed. of the Roman Missal).

Fr. Scott Haynes, SJC, President of the Healey Willan Society in Chicago, created this adaptation and arrangement of Willan’s Missa de Sancta Maria Magdalena in concert with Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, to whom this arrangement has been dedicated.

If a church, publisher or some organization wishes to reprint this in a publication, program, etc. this is done by contacting:

Nicholas White’s Anthems at the Mandatum is a fine liturgical composition designed for use at the foot-washing on Maundy (Holy) Thursday.
LISTEN
Listen to this recording of Nicholas White’s Anthems at the Mandatum

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

Psalm 130 (Out of the Depths) is a profound Psalm of repentance. Nicholas White’s setting of Psalm 130 remind us that the soul buried in the depths of distress can find the pearl of great price, which is “plenteous redemption” (Ps 130:7). Perhaps the singer would never have found that precious pearl of God’s grace had he not been cast into the depths.

PREVIEW THE SCORE
Nicholas White’s “Out of the Depths” was written for the Philadelphia Cathedral Singers, Riyehee Hong, Director, for their Psalm Festival (September 29, 2006). Click here to get a sneak peek at the score…ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

Have you ever:
1) Considered attending a Latin Mass, but found it too intimidating?
2) Struggled to jump back and forth between the pages of a Latin-English Missal?
3) Wondered what all those people are doing at the altar during High Mass?
4) Wished for an effective way to help children to understand and follow along with the Mass?
5) Wanted to know more about the history of the Mass and how it came to be the way it is?
6) Been puzzled by things like Septuagesima, Rogation Days, and other unfamiliar terms, feasts and practices?This Guide is just what you’ve been waiting for!

Whether you’ve been attending the Extraordinary Form of the Mass for years, or are merely curious about it, this guide is designed to open up the riches contained within the Mass to all. Inside, you will find a word-for-word English translation of the Latin text of the Mass, together with photos, diagrams, notes and explanations that will help you not only to follow along, but also to understand the history and significance of the ceremonies in which you are taking part.

In addition, you will find sections explaining the main differences between the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms, a discussion comparing the development of the Mass with that of its sister liturgy, the Divine Office, an exploration of the English translations of the Bible, a full glossary, and finally, recommended prayers intended to help you prepare when receiving the sacraments of Penance and the Holy Eucharist.

REVIEWS

His Eminence Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke:

“My heartfelt congratulations to you on the beautiful presentation, in images and words, of the reality of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass!...the book is most informative and educational, and the content is presented in a most beautiful and attractive manner.”

The Most Reverend Fabian W. Bruskewitz, Bishop Emeritus of Lincoln:

“Congratulations on this accomplishment. The purpose of this book which you stated as a way to help your children understand about the Extraordinary Form of the Mass seems well met in this book. In my view, I would say this is a very good book.”

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski, on the New Liturgical Movement website:

“Without exaggeration, I can say that this is one of the most stunningly beautiful and most informative introductions to the traditional Latin Mass that I have ever seen. For anyone who needs or wants a crash-course in the theology and spirituality of the classical Roman Rite, and a tour of just about everything connected with it, this is your book at last. If I could wave a magic wand, I’d have copies of Treasure and Tradition suddenly appear in every church, chapel, and Catholic family in the English-speaking world.”

LEARNING THE FAITH THROUGH THE MASS

While this book is manifestly ideal for children and young adults, it would function no less well as a text for a Catholic of any age who is getting to know the old Mass for the first time or who, being somewhat familiar with it, seeks more knowledge about it.

It would serve well for parish catechesis or a discussion group. Homeschooling families could build a whole semester’s introduction to the sacred liturgy upon and around this resource. There is a palpable spirit of faith and love in these pages that makes the reading of the book more than an academic exercise; it serves as a prayerful catechesis of the Mass from which I was able to think about many familiar things from a new angle or with a new appreciation.

Our 2015 Liturgical Calendar provides the feasts of both the 1962 Missale Romanum (Extraordinary Form) and the modern Roman Missal (Ordinary Form).

The new 12” x 12” size allows you more space for personal notes, appointments, and special occasions. The calendar provides the rules for fasting and abstinence from the current Code of Canon Law (1983), but it also provides the traditional rules for fasting and abstinence practiced by centuries of saints.

Jesus is the King of of Kings. He is the Infant King of Bethlehem. In these three CD’s consider the majesty of the Infant King.
This special offer of three CD’s for $29.99 saves you $15.01 from the regular price of $45.00.
MUSICAL SAMPLES

Among the “morning canticles” of the Church, the Jubilate Deo is among the most festive of the texts. This musical setting of the Jubilate Deo in B flat major by Healey Willan was written in honor of the great organist of St. Thomas Church, New York City, T. Tertius Noble.

The text is entirely in English.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

This is a fantastic English text setting of the Canticle of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Canticle of Simeon by Healey Willan is for SATB choir and organ. Accomplished composers throughout the centuries have set these deep texts for use in liturgical services and to celebrate Christ’s birth. Among Willan’s settings of these texts for Vespers (“Evensong”), this setting is one choirs enjoy singing again and again.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Holy water fonts are both a practical and aesthetically attractive way of storing holy water. Use this holy water font for your home. As you bless yourself and your family with holy water, this is a wonderful way to renew your baptismal promises.

Question: Do you reject Satan?
Response: I do.

Question: And all his works?
Response: I do.

Question: And all his empty promises?
Response: I do.

Question: Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth?
Response: I do.

Question: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, Who was born of the Virgin Mary, was crucified, died, and was buried, rose from the dead, and is now seated at the right hand of the Father?
Response: I do.

Question: Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting?
Response: I do.

Catholics dip their fingers in the holy water and make the sign of the cross when entering the church. The liturgy may begin on Sundays with the Rite of Blessing and Sprinkling Holy Water, in which holy water is sprinkled upon the congregation; this is called aspersion, from the Latin, aspergere, to sprinkle. This ceremony dates back to the ninth century.

This use of holy water and making a sign of the cross when entering a church reflects a renewal of baptism, a cleansing of venial sin, as well as providing protection against evil. It is sometimes accompanied by the following prayer:

“By this Holy water and by your Precious Blood, wash away all my sins O Lord”.

Benedictus es Domine by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, is a festive motet for SATB Choir with organ accompaniment. The text, entirely in English, is taken from Sacred Scripture. The text from the Old Testament comes from the Canticle of the Three Young Men in the fiery furnace.

English-born and -trained Healey Willan is considered Canada’s most important church composer, among many other accomplishments. Choirs love to sing this extraordinary text setting from the Canticle of the Three Young Men.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established by the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Handel’s Messiah is a tradition at Christmastime. Just as children love decorating trees and hanging stockings, choirs around the world love singing Handel’s Messiah for Christmas, the most famous piece of sacred music in the English language. In his book, Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers, Patrick Kavanaugh tells how Handel barely ate during the 24 days he wrote Messiah. Just after composing the famous Hallelujah Chorus the composer had tears in his eyes and cried out to his servant, “I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself.” When you consider record time in which Handel wrote Messiah, you understand the laud of Ludwig van Beethoven, who said of Handel: “He is the greatest composer that ever lived. I would uncover my head and kneel before his tomb.”

King George II was present at the first performance of Messiah in London, and while he did not “stand” in awe of Handel’s music the way Beethoven did, the King did introduce a unique custom of standing during the Hallelujah Chorus. It is said that the monarch fell asleep, and at the opening of the Hallelujah Chorus, he rose to his feet, thinking it was his cue. Whatever the reason, he stood, and that has been the custom ever since—to stand during the Hallelujah Chorus. About 100 years later, even the aged Queen Victoria, who sat in her wheelchair as the chorus began, struggled to her feet as the choir sang, “King of kings and Lord of lords.” She said, “No way will I sit in the presence of the King of kings.” It inspires us to learn that Handel wrote Messiah during a low point in his life and just after suffering a stroke. Out of his suffering arose this work of beauty that continues to uplift millions of souls. Kavanaugh notes the secret of Handel’s success, “He was a relentless optimist whose faith in God sustained him through every difficulty.”

Biretta Books supports the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius and the A.M.D.G. Foundation as they help restore the sense of the sacred through the gift of music.

CD: The Nutcracker

Christmas Music for Organ from Chicago's Historic St. John Cantius Church

Andrew Schaeffer is completing his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Organ Performance at the American Organ Institute at the University of Oklahoma. He holds the Master of Music degree in organ performance from the Yale School of Music through the Institute of Sacred Music where he studied organ with Thomas Murray and organ improvisation with Jeffrey Brillhart, and he also holds the Bachelor of Music degree with distinction from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN where he studied organ with John Ferguson as well as Choral Conducting with Anton Armstrong.

This meditative setting of the “Canticle of the Virgin Mary” and the “Canticle of Simeon,” entitled, Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis (The Lower Falls Service), by Nicholas White, perfectly sets the atmosphere of liturgical prayer.
PREVIEW THE SCOREClick here to get a peek at this wonderful music that your choir will love to sing…

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

Biretta Books is proud to present Rev. Romano Guardini’s profound reflection, The Spirit of the Liturgy, which discusses the nature of liturgical worship still stands as a guiding light for today’s renewal of worship and prayer.

In poetic terms, The Spirit of the Liturgy clarifies the underlying principles and existential implications of the belief that when Christians join in the Eucharist and other liturgical celebrations, they do so not as discrete individuals but as interconnected members of the one Mystical Body of Christ.

Rev. Romano Guardini (17 February 1885, Verona – 1 October 1968, Munich) was a Catholic priest, author, and academic. He was one of the most important figures in Catholic intellectual life in the 20th century.

This DVD & Booklet from the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius provides instruction on the Pontifical Low Mass as it is celebrated in accord with the 1962 Pontificale Romanum.

The DVD video demonstrates how to serve the Bishop’s Low Mass (both for clergy and altar boys). The booklet corresponds to the DVD and will assist in training clergy and servers in how to properly serve Pontifical Low Mass.

PONTIFICAL LOW MASSfilmed at
ST. JOHN CANTIUS CHURCH - CHICAGOwith
THE CANONS REGULAR OF ST. JOHN CANTIUSon
SEPTUAGESIMA SUNDAY - FEBRUARY 23, 2014

To order both the 2015 Ordo (for the Extraordinary Form) and the 2015 “Mary and the Saints” Liturgical Wall Calendar (with both the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms) click here.

The 2015 ORDO covers from Advent 2014, through the entire calendar year 2015, and into mid-January 2016.

Biretta Books and Sancta Missa now offer this beautifully designed 2015 ORDO to be used in conjunction with the 1962 Missale Romanum for the Extraordinary Form.

The 2015 ORDO covers the complete Liturgical Calendar of the Church according to the 1962 Missale Romanum & 1962 Brevarium Romanum. This edition of the Ordo for the Traditional Latin Mass is the easiest to use - it is very “user-friendly”!

For any given day, the 2015 ORDO contains a clear and simple listing of the feast to be celebrated with its liturgical rank (1, 2, 3, or 4) and color (Green, White, Red, Rose, White, Black, Violet), together with the liturgical rubrics to be observed.

Beautiful artwork is used throughout the 2015 ORDO to remind us of the beauty of the Sacred Liturgy.

An excellent feature of the 2015 ORDO is the inclusion of the special plenary indulgences and prayers that come from the 1962 Indulgentiarum Doctrina, as well as important documents from Rome pertaining to the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass (Extraordinary Form).

The 2015 ORDO is a must-have for each sacristy and for every priest celebrating the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite according to the Liturgical Books of 1962 promulgated by Saint John XXIII .

The 2015 ORDO explains the use of the Divine Office in the Extraordinary Form and is very helpful to anyone wanting to understand the usus antiquior.

Receive more graces from the liturgical year, the year of God’s grace, as you learn the importance of the Church’s rich history.

As you re-introduce in your own home the traditional Christian customs known by Catholics throughout the ages, your family will live the faith in a more integrated way, and come to love the liturgy
that is our heritage and tradition.

Rev. Father Martin von Cochem, of the Capuchin Order, wrote many erudite and edifying spiritual treatises. None of these, however, is equal in learning and in practical usefulness to his Explanation of the The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which is compiled from the teaching of the holy Catholic Church, of the early fathers, of contemporary theologians and spiritual writers.

It is, moreover, written in an agreeable and impressive manner, and the perusal of it cannot fail to give the reader a better acquaintance with the nature of the Mass, to inflame him with devotion for it, and greatly to increase his desire to lose no opportunity of celebrating the Holy Sacrifice or assisting at it, as the case may be.

Father Martin von Cochem was born at Cochem, on the Moselle, in the year 1625, and died at Waghausel in 1712. Over two hundred years have now elapsed since his Explanation of the Holy Mass was first published.

God alone knows how much good it has done to countless numbers of the faithful. Now, if at that time a book of this description was greatly wanted to bring Christians back to the true well-spring of grace, the right form of divine worship, the need for it is even more urgent in the present day, since, under existing circumstances, Catholics are exposed to still greater dangers than they then were, both in regard to faith and practice.

The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is, as Father von Cochem rightly says, an inexhaustible treasury, whence we all, sinners as well as just, may draw the riches we stand in want of. It is the fount of which we all must drink if we would remain steadfast in the practice of virtue or be purged from our sins. But who can appreciate aright, or make any use of, that of which he knows nothing?

Wherefore it is to be desired above all things in our own day to make the inestimable treasures that lie hidden in the holy Mass more widely known; and no better means of doing this can be found than by placing within the reach of all this Explanation of the Holy Mass, by Father Martin von Cochem.

The Altar of the Mass is the holy house of Nazareth, the crib of Bethlehem, the Egyptian place of exile, the hill of Calvary, the garden-tomb in which Our Saviour’s corpse reposed, and the Mount of Olives from which He ascended. The Passion, it is true, is that which is primarily represented and continued in the Holy Mass; yet the prayers and rites of the sacrifice refer, at times, to other mysteries. Thus the dropping of a part of the Sacred Host into the chalice, before the Agnus Dei, represents the reunion of Christ’s soul with His Body and Blood on the morning of the Resurrection. For a description of the many and beautiful analogies between the Eucharistic life of Our Lord and His sacred Infancy.

The Mass is truly a “Sacred Treasure,” and, alas, our cold, dead faith allows it to remain so. If we valued it as we ought, we would hurry every morning to the church, careless of the snows of winter and the heats of summer, in order to get a share of the riches of this treasure. The Saints knew the value of one Mass: that was a dark day in their calendar on which they were deprived of the happy privilige of saying or hearing Mass.

For example, although St. Francis de Sales was overburdened with apostolic work on the Mission of the Chablais, he made it a point never to miss his daily Mass. In order to keep his holy resolution, he had frequently to cross the river Drance, to the village of Marin, in which there was a Catholic church. It happened, in the winter of 1596, that a great freshet carried away a portion of the bridge over the stream, and the passengers were, in consequence, compelled to cross on a plank laid over those arches of the broken structure that had withstood the waters. Heavy falls of snow, followed by severe frosts, made this board very slippery, so that it became dangerous to attempt passing on it; but St. Francis was not to be deterred, for, despite the remonstrances of his friends, he made the perilous journey every morning, creeping over the icy plank on his hands and feet, thus daily risking his life rather than lose Mass.

Sacred Treasures of the Mass by St. Leonard of Port Maurice will stir the soul to practice the Catholic faith with zeal and ardour. This saintly writer truly inspires the Christian soul to strive for perfection through deep and devout devotion to the Mass.

Biretta Books is proud to present this masterwork of the great Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen! These Are the Sacraments is a lucidly written presentation of the seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church.

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen is responsible for this memorable and dramatic book which defines the meanings of the Sacraments to man, their power, and their application.

Bishop Sheen first analyzes the necessity for the Sacraments and gives an explanation of their origin. Then he delves into each, beginning with the rebirth of the Christian at Baptism, continuing on with the strength received at Confirmation, the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ in Holy Communion, the forgiveness of sins in Penance, the anointing of the body in the Last Sacrament, the power of Consecration granted the men receiving Holy Orders, and the nuptial blessing obtained by those who receive Matrimony.

In his text, Bishop Sheen skillfully describes the elements particular to each Sacrament, defining the matter and form necessary for valid administration.

Biretta Books is proud to present this masterwork of the great Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen!

In The Divine Romance, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen delves into love and life with all its pain, sorrow, loneliness and human failures from the perspective of our human quest for God, the inner life of the Trinity, the outpouring of the Spirit and most of all the Lord of Calvary and Easter.

The Divine Romance touches on perennial themes and is a classic that has a power to heal, help and inspire the reader.

In his crisp pastoral style, Sheen describes the believer’s spiritual journey back to the Father with all of its ecclesial dimensions.

Christ guides our mystical journey and forms us into his very Body on Earth.

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas CD

Christmas music for choir & orchestra as well as the classic Stories of Christmas

Christmas Festival Choir of St. John Cantius and Chamber String Orchestra

Who is She that Ascendeth by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, is a festive motet for SATB Choir (a capella) with divisi.

Healey Willan is considered Canada’s most important composer. Among his amazing repertoire of opera, chamber music, symphonic literature and more, his sacred music for worship is of the highest quality.

This extraordinary setting of a text for the Assumption of the Virgin Mary was dedicated to John Finley Williamson and the famed Westminster Choir of Princeton, New Jersey. It has strikingly original harmonies which create a mood of mysticism rather than modernism. It rapidly and aptly shifts to adapt itself to the fast-changing changing imagery of the text. An outstanding brief choral work that is very singable, but will provide your singers a worthy challenge!

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

George Eliot (1819-1880), the pseudonym of Mary Ann Evans, is widely recognized as one of the most important writers of the nineteenth century; yet her two volumes of poetry are often ignored in modern critical assessments. Like so many of her contemporaries, Eliot tried to make significant literary contributions in more than one genre; her poems—both narrative and lyric—deal, however, with some of the same themes which inform her novels and short stories. Her poems are less accomplished than her prose fiction—only one poem, “O May I Join the Choir Invisible,” has achieved any lasting fame—but they do stand as an informative window on to her life as a writer.

TEXT

O May I join the choir invisible
Of those immortal dead who live again
In minds made better by their presence: live
In pulses stirr’d to generosity,
In deeds of daring rectitude, in scorn
For miserable aims that end with self,
In thoughts sublime that pierce the night like stars,
And with their mild persistence urge man’s search
To vaster issues.
So to live is heaven:
To make undying music in the world,
Breathing as beauteous order that controls
With growing sway the growing life of man.
So we inherit that sweet purity
For which we struggled, fail’d, and agoniz’d
With widening retrospect that bred despair.
Rebellious flesh that would not be subdued,
A vicious parent shaming still its child,
Poor anxious penitence, is quick dissolv’d;
Its discords, quench’d by meeting harmonies,
Die in the large and charitable air.
And all our rarer, better, truer self,
That sobb’d religiously in yearning song,
That watch’d to ease the burthen of the world,
Laboriously tracing what must be,
And what may yet be better,—saw within
A worthier image for the sanctuary,
And shap’d it forth before the multitude,
Divinely human, raising worship so
To higher reverence more mix’d with love,—
That better self shall live till human Time
Shall fold its eyelids, and the human sky
Be gather’d like a scroll within the tomb Unread forever.
This is life to come,
Which martyr’d men have made more glorious
For us who strive to follow. May I reach
That purest heaven, be to other souls
The cup of strength in some great agony,
Enkindle generous ardor, feed pure love,
Beget the smiles that have no cruelty,
Be the sweet presence of a good diffus’d,
And in diffusion ever more intense!
So shall I join the choir invisible
Whose music is the gladness of the world.

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

The New Latin Edition is available now, but the New English Edition will be available by the end of summer.

About Missa ‘Dona Nobis Pacem’

One year before the promulgation Pope Paul VI’s constitution De Sacra Liturgia, Jean Langlais prepared music for the celebration of the liturgy in the vernacular. He wrote some music for the Mass in French, but also, in English. Thus, Missa ‘Dona Nobis Pacem,’ composed between April and July 1962, was originally written in English and for use with the vernacular liturgy.

In composing this Missa ‘Dona Nobis Pacem,’ Langlais intended a simple musical form, composing a Mass for unison voices. The Mass, accompanied by organ, may also “be sung throughout by Women alone or Men alone,” as Langlais indicated in the musical score published first in 1963 by The H.W.Gray Company, Inc.

The original English text was approved by the Diocesan Music Commission, but with the change of English translation in 1970, this original edition published by H.W. Gray in 1963 became obsolete for liturgical use.

Rev. Scott A. Haynes, S.J.C., working with Marie-Louise Langlais, has now prepared a new English edition of Missa ‘Dona Nobis Pacem’ that may be used in conjunction with the third edition of the Roman Missal currently in use in the English-speaking world. Father Haynes and Mme. Langlais have also prepared a Latin edition of the Langlais Missa ‘Dona Nobis Pacem, making the Mass more universally available for liturgical use. Both the new English edition and the new Latin edition of the Missa ‘Dona Nobis Pacem’ are available through Biretta Books.

About Jean Langlais

Born on February 15, 1907, in La Fontenelle, Brittany, France, a small village near by the Mont Saint-Michel, Jean Langlais became blind from the age of two. Sent to the Paris National Institute for the Young Blind in 1918, he studied piano, violon, harmony and organ with great blind teachers among other Albert Mahaut and Andre Marchal.

Later, he entered the Paris National Conservatory of Music in Marcel Dupre organ class, obtaining a First Prize in 1930. In 1931, he received the “Grand Prix d’Execution et Improvisation des Amis de l’Orgue”, after having studied improvisation with Charles Tournemire. He ended his studies with a Composition Prize in Paul Dukas class at the Paris Conservatory in 1934.

Professor for forty years at the National Institute for the Young Blind, he also taught at the Paris Schola Cantorum where, between 1961 and 1976, he influenced both french and foreign students.
In 1945, he became the successor to Cesar Franck and Charles Tournemire at the prestigious organ tribune of Sainte-Clotilde in Paris. He left that position in 1987 at the age of 80, having been titular for 42 years.

A great recitalist, he played more than 300 concerts in North America. A prolific composer, his catalog of works comprises 254 opus numbers (organ, vocal and instrumental music).
Jean Langlais died in Paris, on May 8, 1991, at the age of 84.

Your choir needs new music for this Christmas! Order the English anthem, While All Things Were in Quiet Silence, by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous Christmas gem for SATB Choir with organ.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Your choir will love this Eucharistic splendid motet, Very Bread, Good Shepherd, Tend Us by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous choral motet for SATB Choir a capella. Add this to your choir’s repertoire and they will love you for it!

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Perfect for Christmas, There were shepherds abiding in the field, a Christmas anthem by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, takes its text from the Gospel of St. Luke, and is a choral motet for SATB Choir (with some divisi), accompanied by organ. It will be an exciting, a dramatic, and a favorite addition to your choir’s Christmas repertoire.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Need something new for Holy Week? Try The Reproaches by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous choral work for double SATB Choir. Written in English, it is a powerful setting for the Good Friday Liturgy.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Missa SS. Phillipi et Jacobi, by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, is a glorious Missa Brevis setting every choir should know. Written for a capella choir, Healey Willan knows how to move the soul. His liturgical musical works, like the Missa SS. Phillipi et Jacobi, genuinely inspire souls to ascend to God. The music reveals a deep reverence and inspires the attitude of prayer.

In this special edition we have provided Willan’s original version in English, as well as a version that can be sung in Latin, making the Missa SS. Phillipi et Jacobi highly versatile for liturgical use. This new edition of Missa SS. Phillipi et Jacobi by Healey Willan, thus, includes:

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Your SSA choir will love these two short choral gems from Healey Willan. These two a capella motets, O Saving Victim & Look Down, O Lord, by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, are two motets every SSA choir should include in its repertoire. In addition to these great choral miniatures, we have appointed Willan’s O Saving Victim with the original Latin text, O Salutaris, including it in this edition as well.

Copyright 2014. Biretta Books. All Rights Reserved.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Your choir will love Missa Sancti Michaelis, composed by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous a capella Mass for SATB Choir.

In this special edition we have provided Willan’s original version in English, as well as a version that can be sung in Latin, making the Missa Sancti Michaelis highly versatile for liturgical use. This new edition of Missa Sancti Michaelis by Healey Willan, thus, includes:

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Men’s choirs will love this splendid a capella Mass for TTBB Choir. The Healey Willan Society is proud to offer the original version of Missa Brevis in G for Male Voices, composed in English by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, as well as a new edition in Latin.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Organists rejoice in the fantastic organ works of Healey Willan. But, Introduction, Passacaglia and Fugue is arguably the quintessential and irresistible master organ work of the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. Students of organ music and of composition will marvel in the complexity of this fine music. It is a must-have for every organist!

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Enjoy this splendid edition of a choral classic—Crux Fidelix/Faithful Cross—by King John IV of Portugal, and edited by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous choral motet for SATB Choir in honor of the Cross. This newly typeset edition provides both the original Latin text as well as an English text in good translation, making this a highly versatile edition of a choral gem.

Copyright 2014. Biretta Books. Chicago. All Rights Reserved.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Missa Brevis No. X, by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, is a marvelous short choral Mass for SATB Choir (with some divisi).

The Mass was composed with a Kyrie in Greek, and with the Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei in English. In this beautifully new typeset score of the Willan Missa Brevis No. X from the Healey Willan Society and Biretta Books, we provide you not only the original version of the Mass, but also versions of the Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei in Latin, adapted by Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, making the Mass more universally available for liturgical use.

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Organists simply must have Prelude and Fugue in B Minor by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous work for organ appropriate not only for organ recitals but also for use as a postlude at church services.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

A great festive motet for choir (with divisi) and organ, O Lord, Our Governor, by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, features beautiful texts from the Book of Psalms.

The motet was composed for the Coronation of Elizabeth II in Westminster Abbey (2 June, 1953). An alternate text has been provided in this newly typeset edition that makes it possible to sing for other festive occasions.

This great motet was laid aside for decades, but is now available for choirs and organists to once again enjoy singing and playing.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Historical Note

Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, was pleased to accompany Rev. Scott Haynes, S.J.C. to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City on November 17, 2013, when, at the invitation of Rev. Pierre Paul, O.M.V., Director of the Vatican’s choir, Cappella Giulia, Father Haynes conducted a choir of over 100 voices in singing Healey Willan’s O Lord, Our Governor upon the occasion of the 500th Anniversary of the choir. Upon this event the choral festival celebrating the 500th Anniversary of Cappella Giulia was concluded on the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Dedication of Churches of Sts. Peter and Paul in the Vatican.

Let Us Worship and Fall Down, by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan, is a festive motet for SATB Choir. The text is from Psalm 95:6.

Healey Willan Society

To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

Your choir will love this splendid motet, O, How Sweet, O Lord by the Dean of Canadian Composers, Healey Willan. It is a marvelous choral motet for SATB Choir in honor of the Holy Eucharist.

Healey Willan Society
To continue the work of promoting the music of Healey Willan, Mary Willan Mason, Healey Willan’s daughter, has bestowed upon Rev. Scott A. Haynes, SJC, a priest of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago, the responsibility of being the Trustee of the Estate of Healey Willan. To this end, the Healey Willan Society has been established to promote Willan’s music by bring back into print his musical compositions which have fallen out of print or which were never published.

With over 800 opus numbers, Willan was a highly active composer of sacred organ and choral music, orchestral and chamber music, operas and much more. In the field of sacred music, after Johann Sebastian Bach, Healey Willian is the most prolific composer.

On July 7, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI issued Summorum Pontificum, making the Tridentine Latin Mass of 1962 available to all the priests of the Latin Roman Rite. The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described is an invaluable resource for Roman Catholic priests wanting to learn to celebrate the Latin Mass according to the 1962 Missale Romanum.

This superb newly revised 1962 edition of The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described by Fortescue/O’Connell incorporates the current 1983 Code of Canon Law, as well as recent rulings of Ecclesia Dei. It explains in vivid detail the intricate ceremonies of the “Mass of all Ages,” as well as the Divine Office, Benediction, Holy Week, and the complete liturgical year.

We are happy to offer The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described at the low price of $75.00 (USD), plus shipping and handling charges.

“A truly sumptuous edition of this classic work.” —Michael Davies

From the Preface of The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described

It is my pleasure to present this fourteenth edition of The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described, a work originally written by the noted scholar, the Reverend Doctor Adrian Fortescue, and subsequently revised many times by Canon J.B. O’Connell… The permission for the reintroduction into public worship of the Roman Missal according to the typical edition of 1962 dates from the issuance of the Letter Quattuor abhinc annos of 3 October 1984… The use of this missal was further encouraged by His Holiness Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Letter Ecclesia Dei of 2 July 1988. Particularly since then there has been a growing desire for the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in this venerable form of the Roman Rite on the part of a good number of the faithful… This development has rendered Dom Alcuin’s most recent revision of this manual on ceremonies a particularly felicitous one. May the publication of this new edition of a classic work contribute to “that blended ‘harmony’ which the earthly Church raises up to Heaven under the impulse of the Holy Spirit” (Ecclesia Dei 5, a)!

If you have a child aged 4-8 and are looking for a Missal suited to their capabilities, look no further. We consider this the best missal for children in this age bracket.

Originally published in 1958, we, at one point, acquired and sold thousands of originals. After those supplies were exhausted, we decided to reprint this classic in full color.

It includes:

-The Ordinary of the Mass in large print English (with thirty-five color photos)
-The readings for all Sundays and major holy days (with thirteen color illustrations)
-Instructions on when to sit, stand, and kneel
-Prayers for before and after Holy Communion
-The indulgenced prayer before a crucifix
-A child’s preparation for Confession
-The prayers of the priest and responses of the laity for the Missa Recitiva (in Latin and English)

Each year, for Father’s Day, the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago offer three Latin Masses (1962 Missale Romanum) for all those enrolled in our Father’s Day Triduum of Masses.

After purchasing this Mass Card for the Father’s Day Triduum you will be sent our Father’s Day card with a matching envelope.

You will also receive a Reply Envelope on which you will write down all of your intentions for these three Masses and in which you will send us your tax-deductible contribution for offering these three Masses. You must complete the reply envelope and return it to us

MARIAN Design - SEMIGOTHIC LOW MASS SET

Seraphic Vestments

Price includes shipping/insurance within the U.S.A. There will be additional costs for shipping/insurance outside the U.S.A.

The Scriptural Story of Lessons and Carols—the Coming of the Messiah1st Lesson: Genesis 3: 8–15; 17–19
God tells sinful Adam that he has lost the life of Paradise and that his seed will bruise the serpent’s head.2nd Lesson: Genesis 22: 15–18
God promises to faithful Abraham that in his seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.3rd Lesson: Isaiah 9: 2; 6–7
The prophet foretells the coming of the Saviour.4th Lesson: Isaiah 11: 1–3a; 4a; 6–9
The peace that Christ will bring is foreshown.5th Lesson: Luke 1: 26–35; 38
The angel Gabriel salutes the Blessed Virgin Mary.6th Lesson: Luke 2: 1; 3–7
St. Luke tells of the birth of Jesus.7th Lesson: Luke 2: 8–16
The shepherds go to the manger.8th Lesson: Matthew 2: 1–12
The wise men are led by the star to Jesus.9th Lesson: John 1: 1–14St. John unfolds the great mystery of the Incarnation.

Order 2 or more for $10 each…
This audio CD presents the Cantate Domino Choir of St. John Cantius Church of Chicago along with Organ Masterworks. This choir of treble voices presents some of the popular sacred repertoire such Mendelssohn’s Laudate Pueri and Duo Seraphim by Dering, but includes a new Mass setting in the style of Franz Josef Haydn by Fr. Scott Haynes, SJC, the choir’s director. Br. Jonathan Ryan, SJC, principal organist of St. John Cantius Church, presents classic organ favourites by Bach, Franck, Brahms and Widor.The Resurrection Orchestra of St. John Cantius Church joins in this CD presentation playing on the Mass setting along with several Orchestral Favourites by Albinoni, Haydn and Mozart.

The classic Christmas Carol, Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day, has been set by many composers. Nicholas White’s musical setting for organ and choir will not disappoint! Add this to your repertoire this Christmas and you will dance with joy.

PREVIEW THE SCOREClick here to get a sneak peek at the score…
LISTEN TO THE MUSIC
Listen to this recording of the music.

ABOUT THE TEXT

“Tomorrow shall be my dancing day” is an English Christmas Carol. Thomas Cahill, in his book “Mysteries of the Middle Ages” (Doubleday, 2006), presents this song as an English carol in which Christ speaks in His own voice, describing his Incarnation as his “dancing day.”

Cahill writes that the carol can be found on extant broadsides, which makes it certainly as old as early printing, but still impossible to date. He goes on to suggest that the phrase “the legend of my play” appears to be an allusion to a mystery play, and that the song might well have been sung at the beginning of one of those dramas. That, he writes, would place it in the later Middle Ages, perhaps the fourteenth century. The text became especially popular once it was printed in William B. Sandys’ “Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern” (1833).

The image of Christ dancing with joy over His Incarnation recalls that image from the Old Testament, where “David danced before the Lord with all his might…” (2 Samuel 6:14). Let us think of what was in the ancient ark of the covenant, for all that was in that ark as a type is to be seen in Christ our heavenly covenant ark above.

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

Nicholas White is a Grammy nominated composer and conductor, as well as a versatile organist, pianist and singer with experience in many different styles of music. In 2011, Nicholas was appointed to the post of Director of Chapel Music & Organist at St. Paul’s School, Concord, New Hampshire. In 2012 he became Chair of the Arts at the school. In 2013 he was appointed Music Director of The Boston Cecilia, one of America’s oldest and finest performing arts organizations.

Nicholas was born in London, England, and received his early musical training as a treble chorister. He held his first organist and choirmaster position at the age of fifteen, going on to become Organ Scholar of Clare College, Cambridge. Since moving to the United States in 1989, Nicholas has held various positions in churches, colleges and schools. These include Washington National Cathedral, Washington, DC and St. Michael’s Church, New York City.

In 2003 Nicholas founded Tiffany Consort, an ensemble of eight accomplished singers. The group’s first CD, “O Magnum Mysterium” was nominated for a Grammy, and the second CD, “In Sure and Certain Hope: Choral Music of Nicholas White”, was released in December 2006. Both recordings are available on the MSR Classics label.

Dumbarton Concerts in Washington, DC commissioned White’s setting of Poe’s “The Raven” which was performed to great critical acclaim by The Raven Consort in 2013. Additionally, Nicholas recently completed a dramatic song cycle, “On Dreams Alone”, which has been in preparation for the last two decades. Nicholas is in high demand as a composer, receiving numerous commissions from choirs across the country. Most recently these have included The Hanson Institute for American Music (Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY), Lyric Fest (Philadelphia, PA), Christchurch Cathedral (Cincinnati, OH), The Commonwealth Youthchoirs (Philadelphia, PA), The Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), The Association of Anglican Musicians (Hartford, CT), St. John’s Cathedral (Albuquerque, NM), St. Mary’s Episcopal Church (Newton, MA), Dumbarton Concerts (Washington, DC), Granite State Choral Society (Rochester, NH), and Shadyside Presbyterian Church (Pittsburgh, PA.)

REVIEW

“Unashamedly beautiful, Nicholas White’s choral music makes you think about the function of music and how a composer decides on the rightness of its design. White’s music never cloys. It is beautifully crafted, the manner of word-setting stemming very much from the English choral tradition… music that soothes more often than it challenges, while still stimulating the imagination as it nourishes the spirit.”

The Venerable Pope Pius XII issued his restored order for Holy Week in the 1950’s.

To help priests in parishes to celebrate these intricate and beautiful ceremonies of Classic Roman Rite during this most sacred week of the liturgical year, Rev. Frederick R. McManus wrote a marvelous guide to the restored order of Holy Week in 1956 entitled “Rites of Holy Week.”

For the parish or chapel wanting to offer the ceremonies of Holy Week with the 1962 Missale Romanum (Extraordinary Form), this will be an indispensable guide to help the clergy and altar boys accurately rehearse the ceremonies, the sacristan to attend the needs of the sanctuary, sacristy and church, and the musicians to prepare the proper liturgical music.

Order 2 or more for $10 each…
This stunning CD has over an hour of fantastic music! With over twenty traditional carols and motets this could be the perfect Christmas gift! Also includes a beautiful 15 page booklet with song lyrics!

We are happy to offer the music CD, Christmas Music from St. John Cantius, at the very low price of $15.00 (USD), plus shipping and handling charges.

It has the proper Latin liturgical texts for special feasts like Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Peter Claver and other feasts of saints who were from America celebrated in the Americas but not in other countries.

This is the first printing of the Missale Romanum 1962 edition with ecclesiastical approval in years. Several priests were involved in the publishing of this Missale. One could say, quite literally, that the experience of many years of daily celebration of the Holy Mass has been incorporated in its design.

With great attention to detail, care was taken to have an easily readable font, clear design and a refined setting. The margins should be large enough and the paper smooth.

It is hoped that this new “old Missal” will not only give the glory to God, but also delight many priests and faithful.

The high quality features of this beautifully produced Missale Romanum include: 1224 pages with gilt edges, 6 ½”width x 8 5/8”height x 1 5/8”depth, handmade plastic tabs on both sides, bordered bands, cover in burgundy split leather with gold stamping, and includes a sturdy Missal slipcase.

1962 MISSALE ROMANUM INSERT FOR AMERICAN FEAST DAYS

Please note that since this Missal was printed in Germany, the propers for the United States or Canada are not included. But you may purchase the 1962 Missale Romanum Insert for American Feast Days, which is properly called the Missae Propriae Diocesium Statuum Foederatorum Americae Septentrionalis.

Resurrection High Mass Set

Seraphic Vestments

Price includes shipping/insurance within the U.S.A. There will be additional costs for shipping/insurance outside the U.S.A.

-Richly embroidered in gold floral motifs, Resurrection motifs and Holy lamb emblems, made with the highest quality gold metal threads.
-To this amazing High Mass Set we offer also beautiful machine embroidered Lectern Fall matching to the set. Lectern Fall is available only with the Resurrection High Mass Set - it is not available separately.
-Size of the Lectern Fall - to order - based on Clients command after placing order.
-Whole set is decorated with gold machine embroidery and high quality, metal, gold fringes.
-Fabric: dark gold brocade damask with red embroidered panels and red lining.

Funeral Mass Set

Seraphic Vestments

Price includes shipping/insurance within the U.S.A. There will be additional costs for shipping/insurance outside the U.S.A.

Description:
-Entire set is decorated with simple silver orphreys.
-An embroidered IHS emblem rests the center of Funeral Pall, on the hood of the Cope and also on the back of the Chasuble.
-Stoles are finished with soft silver fringes.

A Complete Catholic Prayer Book With Epistles and Gospels for Every Sunday and Holyday of the Year. While this reprint INCLUDES such hi-quality features as a bonded leather softcover, rounded corners, sewn binding, gilded page edges, a black marking ribbon and more, you’re probably just wondering what’s printed inside!

This all-time classic prayer book comes completely filled to overflowing with prayers and devotions cherished by generations of Catholics!

Along with the usual array of traditional morning and evening prayers, litanies, novenas, Stations of the Cross, prayers for the sick and dying, and more. Also included are more rare devotions for: The Mass of Catechumens, Calendar, Holy Days, Special Feasts, Holy Week, Paschaltide, Ember Days, Rogation Days, Days of the Week, Seasons of the Year, Months of the Year, and more!

For devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, an entire collection of prayers exists including a Holy Hour and the famous Forty Hours’ Adoration once practiced in every parish church!

This incredible pocket-size prayer book also includes for the Traditional Latin Mass (Extraordinary Form). Ordinary texts of the Mass (in Latin and English),Sunday Epistles and Gospels (English only),Propers for the Requiem and Nuptial Mass (in Latin and English), Sunday Vespers, the other sacramental rites such as Baptism and Extreme Unction (in English), and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

Peppered throughout with symbolic lithographs, the hi-quality scans of this book’s text matches that of the original printing. This reprint is current with the traditional 1962 Missale Romanum by inserting an updated Table of Moveable Feasts (good till 2041!) and St. Joseph’s name in the Roman Canon.

Customer Reviews

Upon receiving the “Blessed Be God” prayerbook, I immediately fell in love with it. It is a great book. It is not a giant prayerbook with devotions and readings and meditations for every day of the year, but simply, it packs meaningful prayers, novenas, and vespers, (Not to mention loads of devotions, litanies, and Latin-to-English masses!) in just over 700 pages! A normal prayer book would take over 1,000 or more pages to do that. If you want a prayerbook that has lots of traditional prayers, but is not giant and weighs 50 pounds, this is the book for you. The best part is its size. Even with over 300 prayers, it would still be considered a pocket prayerbook. Gold laced pages and cover, beautiful illustrations, and a silk ribbon, it is a small but powerful, beautiful prayerbook. No Catholics library would be complete without this book. Only con: the book is hard to keep open when reading, but hey! This is still a great, compact prayerbook. A must have.

For traditional Roman Catholics, this is simply the best prayer book in English. The language throughout the book is in the Douay-Rheims style of traditional English. All of the prayers are written for the sake glorifying God through beautiful prosaic and poetic prayers and devotions. In addition, this is one of the most comprehensive prayer books you can find including the Order of the Mass (in English and Latin) as well as prayers and devotions for all occasions. I can’t recommend this prayer book enough.

St. John Cantius in Chicago houses a grand restored Casavant Pipe Organ (Opus 1130), which was built in 1926 and restored in 2013.

Now you can experience the beautiful sound of the newly restored Casavant Pipe Organ (Opus 1130, built in 1926) at Chicago’s historic St. John Cantius Church on DVD!

Two (2) DVDs of the Dedication of Casavant’s Opus 1130 have been created. One DVD is of the Organ Dedication Recital of Concert Organist Thomas Schuster with violinist Br. Mathew Schuster, SJC. The second DVD is of the Casavant Opus 1130 Pipe Organ Blessing & Mass of Dedication.

In this DVD you will see Francis Cardinal George. OMI, Archbishop of Chicago, bless this grand organ. You hear Thomas Schuster perform the first organ piece on the newly dedicated organ, the festive Carillon-Sortie by Henri Mulet (1878-1967). This DVD features Bishop Joseph Perry celebrating the Traditional Latin Mass (Pontifical High Mass) with the assistance of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius of Chicago.

You will hear and see the fabulous 125 voice Festival Choir directed by Fr. Scott Haynes, SJC, and accompanied masterfully on the organ by Stephen Alltop, organist of Northwestern University, Thomas Zeman, organist of St. John Cantius Church, and Walter Whitehouse, former organist of Rockefeller Chapel.

This DVD features the choir singing this great Catholic liturgical music:

Thomas Schuster is currently the director of music and organist at Epiphany Catholic Church in Miami, Florida, where he oversees a large music program with several choirs. Their repertoire is focused on restoring the rich heritage of sacred music from Gregorian chant to the present, including regular performances of orchestral Masses by Mozart, Schubert, Rheinberger, and others. He also directs the annual concert series, Music at Epiphany, and is the founder/artistic director of the Miami International Organ Competition- now in its seventh year and recognized as one of the major events in the United States for young organists.

Mr. Schuster received his Masters degree from the organ studio of Robert Bates at the University of Houston, and also holds a Bachelor of Music degree, Summa cum Laude, from Wayne State University in Detroit, with a double major in piano (Pauline Martin) and organ (Ray Ferguson) performance. Mr. Schuster has also attended music academies in Israel and Europe, and participated in masterclasses with Simon Preston, David Palmer, Jean-Bernard Pommier, David Craighead, and Vadim Monastirsky. He began his study of the organ with Fr. Eduard Perrone at age 14, and served as organist under him for eight years- the majority of that time at Assumption Grotto Church in Detroit. He began his piano study at age eleven; his early instructors included George Le Blanc and Thomas Green at the Academie Ste. Cecile, Ontario, Canada

Mr. Schuster served as Professor of Organ at Florida International University in Miami from 2003-2006, and currently teaches privately. A winner of numerous piano and organ prizes, he was named the first-place winner of the 2011 North American Classical Organ Competition, the 2001 Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival/USA and the 2001 AGO/Quimby Region V Young Organists Competition. Thomas received prizes at the Wells Competition for Young Organists in Lubbock, TX and Shandon Competition in Columbia, SC, and was also a finalist in the Fort Wayne National Organ Playing Competition and the 2009 Jordan International Organ Competition. He has appeared at prestigious venues throughout the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean, including recitals at Stanford University and at the 2002 National AGO Convention in Philadelphia. Mr. Schuster was a recently a featured performer at the 2012 conference of the Westfield Center for Historical Keyboard Studies. His performances and recordings have been broadcast throughout the United States and Canada on National Public Radio’s Pipedreams, and CBC Radio II.

Currently collaborating with trumpeter Brian Neal of the Dallas Brass in a series of concerts, Mr. Schuster has published a CD of trumpet and organ arrangements and original compositions titled Reflections. Thomas has publicly performed much of the standard repertoire for organ and orchestra, and has also released a critically acclaimed compact disc of twentieth-century organ concertos by Anton Heiller, Walter Braunfels, and Max Baumann. He resides in Florida with his wife, Erica, and their seven children.

Br. Matthew Schuster, S.J.C. is a fully professed brother with the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius and is currently studying for the priesthood. He studied violin under Alvin Score of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra for seven years and was a long standing member of the Oakland Youth Orchestra, which in 2006 awarded him first prize in the symphony level solo competition. For a number of years he was also a member in the Detroit Symphony Civic Orchestra. Presently he is engaged in continuing violin studies under Henry Criz, former concertmaster of Chicago’s Lyric Opera.

Stephen Alltop has built a career based on excellence in several disciplines, conducting both orchestral and choral ensembles, and performing as a keyboard artist. He is Music Director of the Apollo Chorus of Chicago, the Elmh urst Symphony Orchestra and the Green Lake Choral Institute. In April of this year he was named as the new Music Director and Conductor of the Champaign Urbana Symphony Orchestra. Dr. Alltop has served as a member of Northwestern University’s conducting and keyboard faculties since 1994 where he conducts the Alice Millar Chapel Choir and the Baroque Music Ensemble. Mr. Alltop has guest conducted numerous orchestras and choruses across the United States. He has led opera and orchestral concerts with a number of Italian orchestras, including I Soloisti di Perugia, Fondazione Arturo Toscanini (Bologna), Teatro Reggio Orchestra (Parma), Festival Mozart (Roverto), Orchestra Sinfonica (Bari), Teatro Piccinni (Bari), and the Festival Duni (Matera). Dr. Alltop led the International Schools Choral Music Society Festival in Busan, South Korea in February of this year. He has worked closely with leading composers of the day, including residency projects with John Corigliano, Eleanor Daley and Eric Whitacre, and has conducted world premieres of works by John Luther Adams, Jan Bach, Miguel del Agila, Frank Ferko, Fabrizio Festa, Stephen Paulus, Alan Terricciano, and many others. In 2007, he made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting music of Eric Whitacre.

Stephen Alltop made his Chicago Symphony Orchestra subscription concert debut as a harpsichord soloist in 2009 playing Bach with conductor Pinchas Zukerman. He appeared as an organ soloist with the CSO at the Ravinia Festival of 200 8. In 2011, Mr. Alltop served as principal organist for Bach’s St. Matthew Passion for Soli Deo Gloria’s Chicago Bach Project, and with the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris and conductor John Nelson at the Basilique St. Denis. As a harpsichordist and organist, he has performed with the Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Chicago Sinfonietta, Joffrey Ballet, Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Omaha Symphony, and the Peninsula Music Festival. Mr. Alltop has recorded Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 on the American Gramaphone label and a disc of baroque arias with soprano Julianne Baird and trumpeter Darin Kelly on the Albany label. As a conductor, his CD’s include The Divas of Mozart’s Day with soprano Patrice Michaels on the Cedille label, operatic and chamber works of Antonio Caldara with soprano Julianne Baird on the Albany label, and Handel’s complete Messiah with the Apollo Chorus and Orchestra of Chicago on the Clarion label. Stephen Alltop is represented by Joanne Rile Artist Management. Today we are most fortunate to have Mr. Alltop serving as our guest organist for the Organ Blessing and Pontifical Latin High Mass.
Fr. Scott A. Haynes, S.J.C. completed choral conducting studies at the University of Alabama under Dr. Sandra Willets in 1993, complimented by additional post-graduate classes in conducting with Dr. James Jordan at Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. Having studied composition under Dr. Frederic Goosen at the University of Alabama, he won the American Society of Composers and Arrangers’ Raymond Hubbell Award for orchestral composition in 1992. He has performed in Organ Master Classes for Peter Hurford, Thomas Murray, and Todd Williamson. After college he studied organ and choral conducting at Washington’s National Cathedral from 1994-98 under the tutelage of Dr. Douglas Major, Organist and Choirmaster. Ordained in 2007 for the Archdiocese of Chicago as a member of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius, Fr. Haynes serves as Associate Pastor of St. John Cantius Church, and also conducts the Resurrection Choir and Orchestra, and the Cantate Domino Choir. He has directed several CD recording projects at Saint John Cantius, including two this year, Coronation Mass: Midnight Mass from St. John Cantius and Carols by Candlelight: Lessons and Carols from St. John Cantius. Today, he actively composes liturgical music for the choirs of St. John Cantius and serves as Chaplain to the Patrons of Sacred Music. In November he will lead over 130 choir and orchestra members in pilgrimage to Rome to sing for the choral festival celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the Cappella Giulia, the Vatican Choir once conducted by Paelstrina, which will be held at St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City.

Thomas Edward Zeman studied piano and music theory with Mildred Adaska and Ada Gregor. Afterwards he studied violin with George Metskas. At the Sherwood School of Music he studied piano under Leo Podolsky. While completing his high school studies he began coursework in music at Morton Junior College.

At DePaul University he studied piano with Thaddeus Kozack, villing with David Moll, chamber music, orchestra and orchestral conducting with Paul Stassevitch, and composition with Donald Jenni and John Downey. He obtained the Bachelor of Music degree at DePaul with a major in composition and a minor in piano.

At Indiana University in Bloomington he studied piano with Frederick Baldwin, and composition with Bernhard Heiden and Juan Orrego-Salas. He has studied organ with Arthur C. Becker, Sr. and Herdon Spillman. He holds the Master of Music degree from Indiana University with a major in composition and a minor in piano. He, furthermore, completed the coursework toward the Doctorate of Music degree with a major in composition and with minors in piano and theory. He has studied semiology and chironomy at the Gregorian Chant Institute at St. Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana. He performs in concerts and recitals as soloist and chamber musician.

He is vice president of the Chicago Camerata, and organization of several chamber music groups. As a member of the Chicago Camerata Trio he has performed on “Live from WFMT.” He has also performed on the Chicago Symphony Chamber Music Series. With the Betty Haag Academy of Music, he plays piano for student and guest violin soloists and for the violin ensemble, for local concerts and on tour. At St. John Cantius Church he frequently plays organ as soloist and accompanist with the St. Cecilia Choir and the Resurrection Choir and Orchestra.

In order to expand both classicism and romanticism, he has developed a highly ordered system of composition, employing a large number of pitches related through the ratios of integers. He has composed solo works, orchestral works, choral works and chamber works.

He believes music, whether it be for concert or for worship, should have a positive influence on the listener. His specific purpose in life is to compose music that will help people better to appreciate true peace, joy and the glory of God. Today, he is playing the secondary organ parts on the small choir organ during the 4:00 p.m. Mass.

Thomas Schuster is currently the director of music and organist at Epiphany Catholic Church in Miami, Florida, where he oversees a large music program with several choirs. Their repertoire is focused on restoring the rich heritage of sacred music from Gregorian chant to the present, including regular performances of orchestral Masses by Mozart, Schubert, Rheinberger, and others. He also directs the annual concert series, Music at Epiphany, and is the founder/artistic director of the Miami International Organ Competition- now in its seventh year and recognized as one of the major events in the United States for young organists.

Mr. Schuster received his Masters degree from the organ studio of Robert Bates at the University of Houston, and also holds a Bachelor of Music degree, Summa cum Laude, from Wayne State University in Detroit, with a double major in piano (Pauline Martin) and organ (Ray Ferguson) performance. Mr. Schuster has also attended music academies in Israel and Europe, and participated in masterclasses with Simon Preston, David Palmer, Jean-Bernard Pommier, David Craighead, and Vadim Monastirsky. He began his study of the organ with Fr. Eduard Perrone at age 14, and served as organist under him for eight years- the majority of that time at Assumption Grotto Church in Detroit. He began his piano study at age eleven; his early instructors included George Le Blanc and Thomas Green at the Academie Ste. Cecile, Ontario, Canada

Mr. Schuster served as Professor of Organ at Florida International University in Miami from 2003-2006, and currently teaches privately. A winner of numerous piano and organ prizes, he was named the first-place winner of the 2011 North American Classical Organ Competition, the 2001 Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival/USA and the 2001 AGO/Quimby Region V Young Organists Competition. Thomas received prizes at the Wells Competition for Young Organists in Lubbock, TX and Shandon Competition in Columbia, SC, and was also a finalist in the Fort Wayne National Organ Playing Competition and the 2009 Jordan International Organ Competition. He has appeared at prestigious venues throughout the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean, including recitals at Stanford University and at the 2002 National AGO Convention in Philadelphia. Mr. Schuster was a recently a featured performer at the 2012 conference of the Westfield Center for Historical Keyboard Studies. His performances and recordings have been broadcast throughout the United States and Canada on National Public Radio’s Pipedreams, and CBC Radio II.

Currently collaborating with trumpeter Brian Neal of the Dallas Brass in a series of concerts, Mr. Schuster has published a CD of trumpet and organ arrangements and original compositions titled Reflections. Thomas has publicly performed much of the standard repertoire for organ and orchestra, and has also released a critically acclaimed compact disc of twentieth-century organ concertos by Anton Heiller, Walter Braunfels, and Max Baumann. He resides in Florida with his wife, Erica, and their seven children.
Br. Matthew Schuster, S.J.C. is a fully professed brother with the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius and is currently studying for the priesthood. He studied violin under Alvin Score of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra for seven years and was a long standing member of the Oakland Youth Orchestra, which in 2006 awarded him first prize in the symphony level solo competition. For a number of years he was also a member in the Detroit Symphony Civic Orchestra. Presently he is engaged in continuing violin studies under Henry Criz, former concertmaster of Chicago’s Lyric Opera.

Experience the beautiful sound of the newly restored Casavant Pipe Organ (Opus 1130, built in 1926) at Chicago’s historic St. John Cantius Church.

In this DVD you will see Francis Cardinal George. OMI, Archbishop of Chicago, bless this grand organ. You hear Thomas Schuster perform the first organ piece on the newly dedicated organ, the festive Carillon-Sortie by Henri Mulet (1878-1967).

This DVD features Bishop Joseph Perry celebrating the Traditional Latin Mass (Pontifical High Mass) with the assistance of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius of Chicago.

You will hear and see the fabulous 125 voice Festival Choir directed by Fr. Scott Haynes, SJC, and accompanied masterfully on the organ by Stephen Alltop, organist of Northwestern University, Thomas Zeman, organist of St. John Cantius Church, and Walter Whitehouse, former organist of Rockefeller Chapel.

This DVD features the choir singing this great Catholic liturgical music:

Stephen Alltop has built a career based on excellence in several disciplines, conducting both orchestral and choral ensembles, and performing as a keyboard artist. He is Music Director of the Apollo Chorus of Chicago, the Elmh urst Symphony Orchestra and the Green Lake Choral Institute. In April of this year he was named as the new Music Director and Conductor of the Champaign Urbana Symphony Orchestra. Dr. Alltop has served as a member of Northwestern University’s conducting and keyboard faculties since 1994 where he conducts the Alice Millar Chapel Choir and the Baroque Music Ensemble. Mr. Alltop has guest conducted numerous orchestras and choruses across the United States. He has led opera and orchestral concerts with a number of Italian orchestras, including I Soloisti di Perugia, Fondazione Arturo Toscanini (Bologna), Teatro Reggio Orchestra (Parma), Festival Mozart (Roverto), Orchestra Sinfonica (Bari), Teatro Piccinni (Bari), and the Festival Duni (Matera). Dr. Alltop led the International Schools Choral Music Society Festival in Busan, South Korea in February of this year. He has worked closely with leading composers of the day, including residency projects with John Corigliano, Eleanor Daley and Eric Whitacre, and has conducted world premieres of works by John Luther Adams, Jan Bach, Miguel del Agila, Frank Ferko, Fabrizio Festa, Stephen Paulus, Alan Terricciano, and many others. In 2007, he made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting music of Eric Whitacre.

Stephen Alltop made his Chicago Symphony Orchestra subscription concert debut as a harpsichord soloist in 2009 playing Bach with conductor Pinchas Zukerman. He appeared as an organ soloist with the CSO at the Ravinia Festival of 200 8. In 2011, Mr. Alltop served as principal organist for Bach’s St. Matthew Passion for Soli Deo Gloria’s Chicago Bach Project, and with the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris and conductor John Nelson at the Basilique St. Denis. As a harpsichordist and organist, he has performed with the Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Chicago Sinfonietta, Joffrey Ballet, Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Omaha Symphony, and the Peninsula Music Festival. Mr. Alltop has recorded Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 on the American Gramaphone label and a disc of baroque arias with soprano Julianne Baird and trumpeter Darin Kelly on the Albany label. As a conductor, his CD’s include The Divas of Mozart’s Day with soprano Patrice Michaels on the Cedille label, operatic and chamber works of Antonio Caldara with soprano Julianne Baird on the Albany label, and Handel’s complete Messiah with the Apollo Chorus and Orchestra of Chicago on the Clarion label. Stephen Alltop is represented by Joanne Rile Artist Management. Today we are most fortunate to have Mr. Alltop serving as our guest organist for the Organ Blessing and Pontifical Latin High Mass.
Fr. Scott A. Haynes, S.J.C. completed choral conducting studies at the University of Alabama under Dr. Sandra Willets in 1993, complimented by additional post-graduate classes in conducting with Dr. James Jordan at Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. Having studied composition under Dr. Frederic Goosen at the University of Alabama, he won the American Society of Composers and Arrangers’ Raymond Hubbell Award for orchestral composition in 1992. He has performed in Organ Master Classes for Peter Hurford, Thomas Murray, and Todd Williamson. After college he studied organ and choral conducting at Washington’s National Cathedral from 1994-98 under the tutelage of Dr. Douglas Major, Organist and Choirmaster. Ordained in 2007 for the Archdiocese of Chicago as a member of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius, Fr. Haynes serves as Associate Pastor of St. John Cantius Church, and also conducts the Resurrection Choir and Orchestra, and the Cantate Domino Choir. He has directed several CD recording projects at Saint John Cantius, including two this year, Coronation Mass: Midnight Mass from St. John Cantius and Carols by Candlelight: Lessons and Carols from St. John Cantius. Today, he actively composes liturgical music for the choirs of St. John Cantius and serves as Chaplain to the Patrons of Sacred Music. In November he will lead over 130 choir and orchestra members in pilgrimage to Rome to sing for the choral festival celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the Cappella Giulia, the Vatican Choir once conducted by Paelstrina, which will be held at St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City.

Thomas Schuster is currently the director of music and organist at Epiphany Catholic Church in Miami, Florida, where he oversees a large music program with several choirs. Their repertoire is focused on restoring the rich heritage of sacred music from Gregorian chant to the present, including regular performances of orchestral Masses by Mozart, Schubert, Rheinberger, and others. He also directs the annual concert series, Music at Epiphany, and is the founder/artistic director of the Miami International Organ Competition- now in its seventh year and recognized as one of the major events in the United States for young organists.

Mr. Schuster received his Masters degree from the organ studio of Robert Bates at the University of Houston, and also holds a Bachelor of Music degree, Summa cum Laude, from Wayne State University in Detroit, with a double major in piano (Pauline Martin) and organ (Ray Ferguson) performance. Mr. Schuster has also attended music academies in Israel and Europe, and participated in masterclasses with Simon Preston, David Palmer, Jean-Bernard Pommier, David Craighead, and Vadim Monastirsky. He began his study of the organ with Fr. Eduard Perrone at age 14, and served as organist under him for eight years- the majority of that time at Assumption Grotto Church in Detroit. He began his piano study at age eleven; his early instructors included George Le Blanc and Thomas Green at the Academie Ste. Cecile, Ontario, Canada

Mr. Schuster served as Professor of Organ at Florida International University in Miami from 2003-2006, and currently teaches privately. A winner of numerous piano and organ prizes, he was named the first-place winner of the 2011 North American Classical Organ Competition, the 2001 Albert Schweitzer Organ Festival/USA and the 2001 AGO/Quimby Region V Young Organists Competition. Thomas received prizes at the Wells Competition for Young Organists in Lubbock, TX and Shandon Competition in Columbia, SC, and was also a finalist in the Fort Wayne National Organ Playing Competition and the 2009 Jordan International Organ Competition. He has appeared at prestigious venues throughout the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean, including recitals at Stanford University and at the 2002 National AGO Convention in Philadelphia. Mr. Schuster was a recently a featured performer at the 2012 conference of the Westfield Center for Historical Keyboard Studies. His performances and recordings have been broadcast throughout the United States and Canada on National Public Radio’s Pipedreams, and CBC Radio II.

Currently collaborating with trumpeter Brian Neal of the Dallas Brass in a series of concerts, Mr. Schuster has published a CD of trumpet and organ arrangements and original compositions titled Reflections. Thomas has publicly performed much of the standard repertoire for organ and orchestra, and has also released a critically acclaimed compact disc of twentieth-century organ concertos by Anton Heiller, Walter Braunfels, and Max Baumann. He resides in Florida with his wife, Erica, and their seven children.

Thomas Edward Zeman studied piano and music theory with Mildred Adaska and Ada Gregor. Afterwards he studied violin with George Metskas. At the Sherwood School of Music he studied piano under Leo Podolsky. While completing his high school studies he began coursework in music at Morton Junior College.

At DePaul University he studied piano with Thaddeus Kozack, villing with David Moll, chamber music, orchestra and orchestral conducting with Paul Stassevitch, and composition with Donald Jenni and John Downey. He obtained the Bachelor of Music degree at DePaul with a major in composition and a minor in piano.

At Indiana University in Bloomington he studied piano with Frederick Baldwin, and composition with Bernhard Heiden and Juan Orrego-Salas. He has studied organ with Arthur C. Becker, Sr. and Herdon Spillman. He holds the Master of Music degree from Indiana University with a major in composition and a minor in piano. He, furthermore, completed the coursework toward the Doctorate of Music degree with a major in composition and with minors in piano and theory. He has studied semiology and chironomy at the Gregorian Chant Institute at St. Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana. He performs in concerts and recitals as soloist and chamber musician.

He is vice president of the Chicago Camerata, and organization of several chamber music groups. As a member of the Chicago Camerata Trio he has performed on “Live from WFMT.” He has also performed on the Chicago Symphony Chamber Music Series. With the Betty Haag Academy of Music, he plays piano for student and guest violin soloists and for the violin ensemble, for local concerts and on tour. At St. John Cantius Church he frequently plays organ as soloist and accompanist with the St. Cecilia Choir and the Resurrection Choir and Orchestra.

In order to expand both classicism and romanticism, he has developed a highly ordered system of composition, employing a large number of pitches related through the ratios of integers. He has composed solo works, orchestral works, choral works and chamber works.

He believes music, whether it be for concert or for worship, should have a positive influence on the listener. His specific purpose in life is to compose music that will help people better to appreciate true peace, joy and the glory of God. Today, he is playing the secondary organ parts on the small choir organ during the 4:00 p.m. Mass.

White Gold/Blue Semi-Gothic Low Mass Set - Marian Design

Seraphic Vestments

Price includes shipping/insurance within the U.S.A. There will be additional costs for shipping/insurance outside the U.S.A.

-Machine embroidered white/cream Canopy.
-Embroidered floral motifs in various color.
-Each side of the Canopy is decorated with a different emblem: Chalice, IHS, Lamb, Sacred Heart of Jesus
-The inside roof of the canopy is decorated with an embroidered Holy Spirit motif.
-Material: Roma fabric in white/cream color with shiny soft gold thread
-The canopy is equipped with special sleeves for extra rods, to make each side stiffer.
- Waterproof fabric is used for the roof of the canopy to protect against rain.

-On the back of the veil: An embroidered IHS emblem made on plain red fabric with cross shape woven orphreys.
-Both short edges of the veil are finished with narrow embroidered woven orphreys and soft gold fringes.
-Fabric: brocade damask
-Fully lined

Measurement:

Length - 280 cm/ 110 in
Width - 60 cm/ 23 ½ in

Gothic Style Humeral Veil - Brocade

Seraphic Vestments

Price includes shipping/insurance within the U.S.A. There will be additional costs for shipping/insurance outside the U.S.A.

-Made on brocade damask fabric.
-Front panels are richly decorated with gold, machine embroidered floral motifs.
-On the back of the veil: A red panel with richly machine embroidered floral motifs and the Holy Lamb emblem in the center.
-Both short edges are decorated with the highest quality beautiful metal fringes in gold.
-Fully lined.

Measurement:

Length - 280cm/ 110 in
Width - 60cm/ 23½ in

Gothic Style Humeral Veil - Chalice

Seraphic Vestments

Price includes shipping/insurance within the U.S.A. There will be additional costs for shipping/insurance outside the U.S.A.

-Decorated with high quality machine embroidered orphreys.
-The back of the vestment is decorated with a machine embroidered IHS emblem.
-Both side edges are finished with high quality metal gold fringes and metal braids.
-Fabric: simple damask.
-Fully lined

-On the back of the veil: Embroidered IHS emblem made on plain fabric with cross shape embroidered orphreys.
-The edges are finished with a narrow embroidered orphrey and gold cord.
-Both short edges are finished with soft gold fringes.
-Fabric: damask.
-Fully lined.